Lung Surfactant Accelerates Skin Wound Healing : A Translational Study with a Randomized Clinical Phase I Study

Lung surfactants are used for reducing alveolar surface tension in preterm infants to ease breathing. Phospholipid films with surfactant proteins regulate the activity of alveolar macrophages and reduce inflammation. Aberrant skin wound healing is characterized by persistent inflammation. The aim of the study was to investigate if lung surfactant can promote wound healing. Preclinical wound models, e.g. cell scratch assays and full-thickness excisional wounds in mice, and a randomized, phase I clinical trial in healthy human volunteers using a suction blister model were used to study the effect of the commercially available bovine lung surfactant on skin wound repair. Lung surfactant increased migration of keratinocytes in a concentration-dependent manner with no effect on fibroblasts. Significantly reduced expression levels were found for pro-inflammatory and pro-fibrotic genes in murine wounds. Because of these beneficial effects in preclinical experiments, a clinical phase I study was initiated to monitor safety and tolerability of surfactant when applied topically onto human wounds and normal skin. No adverse effects were observed. Subepidermal wounds healed significantly faster with surfactant compared to control. Our study provides lung surfactant as a strong candidate for innovative treatment of chronic skin wounds and as additive for treatment of burn wounds to reduce inflammation and prevent excessive scarring. © 2020, The Author(s)

FIRST `Winged' and `X'-shaped Radio Source Candidates

A small number of double-lobed radio galaxies (17 from our own census of the literature) show an additional pair of low surface brightness `wings', thus forming an overall `X'-shaped appearance. The origin of the wings in these radio sources is unclear. They may be the result of back-flowing plasma from the currently active radio lobes into an asymmetric medium surrounding the active nucleus, which would make these ideal systems in which to study thermal/non-thermal plasma interactions in extragalactic radio sources. Another possibility is that the wings are the aging radio lobes left over after a (rapid) realignment of the central supermassive black-hole/accretion disk system due perhaps to a merger. Generally, these models are not well tested; with the small number of known examples, previous works focused on detailed case studies of selected sources with little attempt at a systematic study of a large sample. Using the VLA-FIRST survey database, we are compiling a large sample of winged and X-shaped radio sources for such studies. As a first step toward this goal, an initial sample of 100 new candidate objects of this type are presented in this paper. ...[abridged]Comment: (all comments same as v2 except updated external link) AJ, accepted. 36 pgs. Added low resolution figures but table 2 still incomplete. Otherwise, unchanged from previous astro-ph version. For complete version and table 2: http://www.slac.stanford.edu/~teddy/Preprints/xshaped.pdf.g

Traumatic Life Events and Association With Depression, Anxiety, and Somatization Symptoms in Female Refugees

Moran JK, Jesuthasan J, Schalinski I, et al. Traumatic Life Events and Association With Depression, Anxiety, and Somatization Symptoms in Female Refugees. JAMA Network Open . 2023;6(7): e2324511.Key Points Question Which traumatic life events are associated with current depression, anxiety, and somatization symptoms in female refugees seeking psychological help? Findings In this cross-sectional study of 620 female refugees, by use of random forest regression, family violence had the highest scores associated with depression, anxiety, and somatization, beyond cumulative trauma exposure. These scores were higher than those for more frequently reported traumatic events, such as war, accident, lack of housing, hunger, and near death. Meaning These findings suggest that even for women with a history of multiple traumatic experiences, understanding the impact and likelihood of family violence is vital in diagnostic assessments and informing treatment strategies. This cross-sectional study examines which traumatic life events are associated with depression, anxiety, and somatization symptoms, beyond cumulative trauma exposure, in a sample of female refugees. Importance Different types of traumatic life events have varying impacts on symptoms of depression, anxiety, and somatization. For women from areas of the world experiencing war and humanitarian crises, who have experienced cumulative trauma exposure during war and forced migration, it is not known whether cumulative trauma or particular events have the greatest impact on symptoms. Objective To examine which traumatic life events are associated with depression, anxiety, and somatization symptoms, compared with the cumulative amount, in a sample of female refugees. Design, Setting, and Participants For this cross-sectional study, data were collected in 2016 as a part of The Study on Female Refugees. The current analysis was conducted in 2022 to 2023. This multicenter study covered 5 provinces in Germany. Participants were recruited at reception centers for refugees. Women volunteered to participate and to be interviewed after information seminars at the different centers. Exposure Traumatic life events experienced by refugees from areas of the world experiencing war and humanitarian crises. Main Outcomes and Measures Demographic variables (age, country of origin, religion, education, relationship status, and children), traumatic and adverse life events, and self-reported depression, anxiety, and somatization symptoms were measured. Random forest regressions simultaneously examined the importance of these variables on symptom scores. Follow-up exploratory mediation models tested potential associative pathways between the identified variables of importance. Results For the final sample of 620 refugee women (mean [SD] age, 32.34 [10.35] years), family violence was most associated with depression (mean [SD] variable of importance [VIM], 2.93 [0.09]), anxiety (mean [SD] VIM, 4.15 [0.11]), and somatization (mean [SD] VIM, 3.99 [0.15]), even though it was less common than other traumatic experiences, including war, accidents, hunger, or lack of housing. Other factors, such as childhood sexual abuse, injury, near-death experiences, and lack of access to health care, were also important. Follow-up analyses showed partial mediation effects between these factors in their association with symptoms, supporting the unique importance of family violence in understanding mental health. Conclusions and Relevance The findings of this cross-sectional study of refugee women who experienced multiple severe traumas related to war in their home countries and danger encountered during their migration suggest that family violence was key to their current mental health problems. Culturally sensitive assessment and treatment need to place special emphasis on these family dynamics

Near-death experiences, attacks by family members, and absence of health care in their home countries affect the quality of life of refugee women in Germany: a multi-region, cross-sectional, gender-sensitive study

Jesuthasan J, Sönmez E, Abels I, et al. Near-death experiences, attacks by family members, and absence of health care in their home countries affect the quality of life of refugee women in Germany: a multi-region, cross-sectional, gender-sensitive study. BMC Medicine. 2018;16(1): 15

Le Peuple : organe quotidien du syndicalisme

22 avril 19311931/04/22 (A11,N3751)-1931/04/22

Additional file 5: Table S5. of Near-death experiences, attacks by family members, and absence of health care in their home countries affect the quality of life of refugee women in Germany: a multi-region, cross-sectional, gender-sensitive study

Association between sociodemographic variables, quality of life, health perception, and need satisfaction. (DOCX 13 kb